| Chestnut Cake |
| This Italian dessert is a regional specialty of Tuscany. It's not served in restaurants and I've never seen a recipe for it in any cookbook. By chance, I discovered it at the take-out window of a small cafe on some obscure back street in Florence. It had the wonderful taste and feel of the sweet, elderly woman who made it. This is her recipe (minus the sugar) which I'm happy to pass on to you. |
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| 3 cups |
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Chestnut flour |
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| 2 1/2 cups |
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Water |
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| 1/3 cup |
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Raisins |
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| 1/4 cup |
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Pinenuts |
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| 1/4 tsp. |
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Stevia |
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| 6 TB |
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Olive oil |
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| 2 sprigs |
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Rosemary (optional) |
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Pinch sea salt |
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| 1 |
Preheat oven to 450 degrees |
| 2 |
Heat the water and soak raisins until soft and water has cooled. Drain the water from the raisins and reserve. |
| 3 |
Combine flour, water, 2 TB of the oil, stevia and sea salt in a mixing bowl and blend to form a creamy dough. |
| 4 |
Blend the raisins, pinenuts and rosemary into the batter. |
| 5 |
Pour 2 TB oil into an 11 inch shallow baking pan. Pour in batter and add the remaining 2 TB oil on top. |
| 6 |
Bake for 20 minutes or until the surface begins to crack. Pour off excess oil. Remove from pan and serve hot. |
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| Servings: 6 |
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| Cooking Tips |
| Chestnut flour is perfect for gluten sensitive people. It can be substituted for all or part of any flour. It has a naturally sweet, wholesome taste and is very nutritious. It's not easy to find, however. I've included the contact address of the only US grower and miller of chestnuts. |
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